An Open Energy Steering Group was convened on Tuesday 8 September 2026. The Steering Group comprises a wide range of industry leaders and subject matter experts spanning the commercial, regulatory and government landscapes. The Steering Group plays a critical role in Open Energy’s development, providing a sector perspective that ensures that Open Energy is designed for and with the energy industry.
Meeting Aims:
- Update members on SPV and milestone progress made since the last meeting
- Deeper discussions and alignment on key SPV priority areas raised in the last SG
Summary:
- It was agreed that:
- the next SG should be postponed until the anticipated consultations on the Digitalisation Coordination Function and Architectural Reference Framework have been released.
- It was noted that:
- further consultation activity on the Digitalisation Coordination Function and the Architectural Reference Framework is is anticipated later in 2026, scheduled to be November/December.
- the Smart Data Repository is continuing to be developed, with work on licence conditions by Ofgem and a review of security identified as key areas of work.
- the SPV is a proposed, rather than agreed, route to provide an independent, cross-sector coordination model while retaining Data Domain Coordinator representation and expertise in governance.
- the future coordination model remains under development.
- it would be useful to test a number of the aspects that had been discussed through individual one to one engagement with SG members, preceded by a “pulse survey” as a simple way to gauge views.
- It was discussed that:
- the Digitalisation Coordinator would need to balance deep domain expertise with credible independence, including management of both actual and perceived conflicts of interest.
- there may be a need for cross-sector and cross-domain coordination where data journeys, trust frameworks, and associated legal, identity and security requirements extend beyond individual energy data domains.
- clear roles, remit boundaries, decision rights, escalation routes and dispute-resolution processes are needed between Data Domain Coordinators and the future Digitalisation Coordination Function, to avoid duplicated activity.
- behavioural safeguards, including ring-fencing and ethical walls, were raised as possible ways to manage conflicts. The discussion did not conclude whether these would provide sufficient independence without a separate legal structure.
- a cross-cutting, use-case-led approach could help address data needs that are not clearly covered by the current domain model.
- Trust frameworks may need to support alignment across sectors while reflecting differences in data sensitivity, security and access requirements.
- the SPV’s funding, governance, implementation approach and pace of establishment require further consideration.
- the value case for coordination should consider both costs and benefits, recognising that the benefits of data governance can be difficult to quantify directly.
Next meeting: TBC
Formal records, including attendees, are maintained by the secretariat.
These are confidential to the Steering Group Members.